mylittlelogs | Awakened to Death

Entry tags:

Awakened to Death

Who: Minato, Trixie, Tails
What: Minato found out that there are more Evokers in Equestria. He's going to make sure they use them right. Maybe settle some bad blood on the side, too.
Where: Night Market Dojo
When: Afternoon
Warnings: Possible violence, lots of references to death.
Prose or Commentspam: Either.

It was by chance that Minato managed to catch a glimpse of ponies other than himself wearing Evokers. Tails had one, and so did Trixie. With what he knew about them, letting them use them was a dangerous proposition; they didn't know how it worked or the effect it has on one's state of mind if they weren't prepared. So after some time to think, he decided he should train them.

And maybe help them make up with each other on the side, after the Gala incident.

So, both Tails and Trixie would be getting a letter in the morning:

'I don't know where you got that collar you own, but it isn't a tool to take lightly. It can be dangerous if you're not ready for it. Let me help.

Come to the Dojo at exactly 1300, and bring the Evoker. Be ready to work.

If you don't show up, I will find you and take it before you hurt yourself. I hope you understand.

-M.A.'

Once those were sent, Minato borrows a room in the Dojo, setting it up for training. A small variety of wooden weapons, targets, practice dummies, and protective equipment is available, but that would only be if they get that far. The important part was simply learning how to summon. Fighting comes second.

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Trixie isn't exactly the happiest about this letter and being corced to come. It's kind of cutting into the time she uses to practice her stage performances. However, ther content of the letter mentioning Evokers and whatnot is enough to get her to try to at least humor whoever M.A. ~~Larson~~ is.

The showmare arrives and decides to announce her presence. However, the evoker collar isn't seen on her. Probably the work of her standard illusion spell.

"The Great and Powerful Trixie hath arrived!"

Tails understood that the Evoker was a weapon, but other than testing it out back down in the dungeon with Rise and Yukiko, he hadn't used it much yet. A lot of it was because he hasn't had the chance to train with it. Sure it wasn't as satisfying as summoning a glass card, but he won't look a gift horse in the mouth so to speak.

So he was surprised to receive the letter from Minato. Did he not trust him with it? Well it is from his world, so it makes some sense that he would be worried. Still though, did he really have to threaten him like that?

He shows up at the Dojo with the Evoker on as asked. He was here before as a Vulpix with Wally once before.

Once he's inside, he looks for Minato.

"Minato, are you he-"

He stops when he sees Trixie.

"W-what? What are you doing here?"

Oh great... It's him. "Trixie shall be forced to ask you the very same question."

He rolls his eyes at her using third person.

"I was asked to come here to train. What's your excuse? Don't tell me you're here to kick more ponies down."

"Thanatos!"

And suddenly a god of death hovers between the two, stopping the argument before it gets going. It's a bit harsh, but he's gotta set the mood ~~and he really wanted to do that anyway~~.

"You two aren't here to fight with each other. Have a seat."

Thanatos points a sword towards an empty spot in the room, where two mats are waiting.

Trixie is surprised at the sudden Persona summoning. She was just about to bite back at The Terror of Tails, but it seems as if Minato had stopped them. She takes on a more theatrical and friendly demeanor as she approaches Minato.

"Ah, so you were the one who sent personal request to Trixie! However, that does not mean she is in question at the contents of your letter. It appears you had mentioned... an evoker."

Tails was also a bit surprised by the persona, but he does calm down. He's seen Thanatos before.

"Wait a minute. You were sent one, too? Minato, what's going on?"

With the squabble calmed down, Thanatos disappears, leaving Minato to explain the situation.

"Trixie, drop the illusion around your collar for now." He taps his own Evoker collar with a hoof to signify what he's talking about.

"This is an Evoker. It's a tool developed by the Kirijo group where I come from to summon a Persona. I know you two have used a Persona before, but it works differently with these than it did with the fog."

Trixie does as asked, revealing the evoker around her. It looks a tiny bit silly on her around the royal blue cape she wears, revealing why she uses an illusion spell.

"Trixie is confounded as to how this can possibly be different than the card that was able to summon Andras."

He doesn't pay attention to her trick and just ignores her.

"How different is it really than summoning a card?"

"The Evoker is tied closely to death. Without that card, a Persona can only be summoned then you are facing your death. The Evoker forcibly puts your mind in that state so you can summon."

Now that he says it aloud, it seems a lot more grim than he intended, but he continues regardless.

"It can put a strain on your mind, constantly facing and realizing the full extent of Death. Suicidal thoughts aren't uncommon, even after the battle is over."

Wow. That sounds... wow. Extreme. Trixie is now somewhat hesitant to use her evoker collar now. She hasn't had a single thought of suicide yet. In fact, she actively rejects death. She wants to become famous first.

"...Is there any other way?"

Tails' eyes widens at this and his ears droop. The mention of suicide brings up the memory of that one horrible day of witnessing the suicide attempt of a fellow member of the community on the website. Dave was found out by a classmate to be gay and he got bullied hugely for it. Even on Facebook. He couldn't take it and tried to hang himself.

It still gives him nightmares sometimes and he still feels horrible for not being able to prevent it from happening.

He tries his best to calm himself down, though he was having slight trouble with it.

"I-I see. Is there ways to prevent or at least minimize the side-effects...?"

"Your only other options are to either wait for the fog to come back, or not use it at all."

However, he figures that neither of them are going to take those options.

"The only way to get through it is by training and practice. Don't use it too much, and know your limits. Don't abuse it, and you'll get by without getting too bad. If it does get bad, know who your friends are. They can help you. I can help you."

Well, Trixie doesn't see thee fog ever coming back. She doesn't want to toss Andras away, either, so it looks like she's going to have to face using the evoker. But Trixie doesn't need help.

It isn't help if it's business.

"...As you wish. Trixie shall gladly pay for your lessons."

Between this and training to become a sage, along with her performances on stage, Trixie has her work cut out for her.

Minato would be right. He wouldn't risk waiting for the fog to come back. He knows how dangerous it is. Plus even if he were to just not use it, he'll start feeling useless again and he doesn't want to feel that way again.

"Understood. Training and practice it is. I've been meaning to do so anyway. Don't wanna become rusty with it."

"I'm not asking for payment," Minato states, addressing Trixie, "All I ask is that you use that responsibly, and only when necessary." A statement that carried all the more weight after Rainbow Dash's outburst earlier on the scrolls.

"For now, I want to see your Personas. Use them to try and strike me." Minato grabs a wooden shield leaning on the wall behind him. "Don't hold back. I can take anything you can throw." Just in case, however, he switches to Orpheus Telos, to cover all his resistance bases.

So what if you're not asking? You'll get your payment whether you like it or not. As before, it's just business. Not help.

Trixie is taken aback at the request to fight Minato. He had done absolutely nothing to receive her ire. It doesn't seem fair or right to attack him. Trixie never really sparred before.

"...You mean... attack you?"

A wooden shield? Bad idea Minato.

Tails on the other hoof nods and takes a fighting stance. "Aquila!"

The evoker activates and the familiar sound of shattered glass can be heard. A moment later a tall white kitsune in golden armor appears next to Tails. It's about the same height as Princess Luna.

Before he can make his persona attack Minato, his head suddenly hurts and he drops to the ground. Aquila's body starts flickering slightly.

When he had originally used it the first time, he had felt weird, but he had assumed at the time that it was because he wasn't used to summoning him this way (plus his happiness at successfully summoning him had distracted him from the strange feeling).

Now he felt like a ton of bricks on fallen on top of him as memories of the two times he's died comes back in full force.

He starts breathing a little harder as he tries to push away those memories.

No. He can do this. He's come this far and he's not gonna lose his persona again.

He forces himself to stand up and calm down. Aquila's form stops flickering.

"I'm okay. I can do this."

He says this more to himself than to them.

Flames form in Aquila's mouth and an Agilao gets thrown towards Minato. Hope that wooden shield is flame proof or no more shield.

Edited 2014-08-19 02:06 (UTC)

Minato's about to assuage Trixie's concerns, but once he hears Tails summoning, he turns his attention to that, studying how he handled it. The faltering wasn't unexpected; he still knows full well how that first summon felt.

Upon seeing what the spell was, Minato decides to simply cast aside the shield and take it himself. Thanks to Orpheus' resistance, he stands there and doesn't so much as flinch as the flames wash over him. It still hurt, but it was only an Agailo and he had healing spells.

It might remind Tails of a previous encounter he may have had.

Trixie couldn't believe what she just saw. Minato didn't deserve any sort of attack or retaliation whatsoever, and here Tails is, attacking him with only minor hesitation. Trixie bristles at the sight.

"What in Celestia's name are you doing!? Have Trixie's words at the Gala meant nothing to you!?"

Tails is quite surprised by that. The way Minato just took the attack like that. It was just like the 'Pale Pony' he and Yu fought. Could it be...?

No, there was no evidence to support that and he already got into trouble for jumping the gun.

Trixie's word though snap him out of it and he shoots a glare at her.

"Uh excuse me, this is sparing. That's what supposed to happen. What happened at the Gala and now are completely different."

Aquila starts growling at Trixie, but makes no other moves.

"Like I said. I can handle it. I asked both of you to, after all. Besides, that's what heal spells are for."

To demonstrate, he switches to Messiah, then summons him, healing what little damage it did. The slight burn marks on his face and front legs disappear.

"I've been doing this for four years now. I know what I'm doing. But if you really don't want to, use that over there." He points a hoof to what looks to be an archery target.

Trixie glances over to the archery target. ...Yeah, that'll do nicely. Now, Trixie just has to get past the suicide thoughts part of summoning the persona. She squints her eyes and tenses up, attempting to prepare herself for any sort of bad thoughts that would enter her mind. She lets out a slightly shaky breath and activates her evoker.

"Andras...!"

The glass shatters and Trixie flinches upon thoughts of death entering her mind. She also bites back a yelp. That didn't feel good. When all is said and done, a red humanoid person with a blue and gold owl head and wings stands next to Trixie. A few seconds pass as Trixie tries refocusing. She takes a quick deep breath and releases it. Trixie then looks over to Andras. She is happy to see Andras again, but then she remembers her original objective.

Andras glances over to the archery target. It takes a battle pose and releases a bolt of electricity, striking it.

Hmm, electricity. Good thing Aquila doesn't have a weakness to that. Not that he was planning on fighting her.

He turns his attention back to Minato. "Ready to continue?"

Aquila tilts his head slightly at Minato. He seemed curious about that too.

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CW: Past suicide attempt and homophobia.

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CW: Slight panic attack

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